Stories from Wednesday, January 7, 2004

Keeping warm(01/07/04)Ducks at the Sikeston Recreational Complex Pond huddle to keep warm Tuesday afternoon. Today the temperatures will reach the 30s with a chance of snow Thursday.

Sikeston businessman named SEMO regent(01/07/04)JEFFERSON CITY -- Gov. Bob Holden appointed Sikeston businessman Edward "Ned" Matthews to the Southeast Missouri State University Board of Regents on Tuesday. Matthews said he is excited about becoming one of the six voting members of the school's governing board...

Three arrested in drug bust(01/07/04)BENTON -- Three Scott County men face drug-related charges after their arrest by local law enforcement officers. Thomas E. Masterson Jr., 30, of Sikeston is charged with attempting to distribute a controlled substance and possession of a controlled substance. Bond is set at $35,000...

Miner's trees on I-55 will stay put(01/07/04)MINER - Miner's trees alongside Interstate 55 will remain in place. During the regular Miner Board of Aldermen meeting Tuesday, board members rejected a request from a Missouri Department of Transportation official to remove some of the city's trees and replace them with bushes, presumably to provide a clearer view of billboards...

Young Bulldogs win second straight(01/07/04)SIKESTON - Despite a slow start to the season, the Sikeston Bulldogs now have the inside track at getting the No. 2 seed in the Class 3, District 1 tournament in February. By defeating Fredericktown 60-50 on Tuesday night at the Field House, Sikeston is now 2-1 against district opponents...

Cape Central Tigers make Pirates walk plank(01/07/04)CAPE GIRARDEAU -- With three games in five days, including back-to-back nights, Cape Central's boys basketball team cleared the bench and finished with 12 players in the scoring column Tuesday night in a 62-39 win over Perryville at home. Playing in his third game of the season, Mitch Craft came out and scored Central's first five points. In all, the Tigers had seven different scorers in the first quarter and grabbed a 17-10 lead...

NMCC gives Blytheville OT scare(01/07/04)NEW MADRID -- New Madrid County Central came close to pulling off a major upset on Tuesday night, losing to Blytheville in overtime, 63-57. "In a lot of ways, that was a win for us," said NMCC coach Scott Kruse. "We had a lot of good practices over the holidays and got a lot of work in. We built on what we've been working on, and that's so fun to see."...

Charleston whips Notre Dame with balanced attack(01/07/04)CAPE GIRARDEAU - The Charleston Bluejays collected their 12th win of the season Tuesday night by whipping the Notre Dame Bulldogs 66-40. The 'Jays have lost only once. In the opening minutes of the contest, Notre Dame came out and looked like they could compete with Charleston on both ends of the floor...

Dorothy George(01/07/04)BERTRAND - Dorothy Mae George, 73, died at 4 a.m. Jan. 6, 2004, at her home. Born May 3, 1930, in Salem, Ky., daughter of the late Charlie H. and Ocie Lee Guess Heaton, she lived in Cahokia, Ill., for several years before returning to Bertrand in 1985. She attended the Cornerstone Church in Bertrand...

Ella Brown(01/07/04)BROKEN ARROW, Okla. - Ella Brown, 92, formerly of Dexter, Mo., died Jan. 6, 2004, at the Village Health Care Center at Broken Arrow. Born March 23, 1911, in Stoddard County, Mo., to the late Douglas and Nancy Cowan Estes, she was a former employee of the Elder Manufacturing Co. in Dexter...

Raymond Wright(01/07/04)SIKESTON - Raymond Wright, 78, died Jan. 6, 2004, at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. Born Aug. 8, 1925, in Clarkton, son of the late Rudy A. and Beulah L. Freeman Wright, he was a master certified watchmaker and owned and operated Wright's Jewelry before retiring. ...

Elizabeth Woods(01/07/04)EAST PRAIRIE - Elizabeth Mae Woods, 79, died at 4:15 a.m. Jan. 6, 2004, at the East Prairie Nursing Center. Born May 8, 1924, in Hickman County, Ky., daughter of the late James Edgar "Ed" and Dessie Newton Rhodes, she lived in Mississippi County most of her life. She was a member of Victory Baptist Church in East Prairie...

Melvin Phillips(01/07/04)MATTHEWS - Melvin Ray Phillips, 63, died Jan. 4, 2004, at his home. Born Feb. 2, 1940, in Cash, Ark., son of the late Leonard Lee and Nellie Maud Nicholas Phillips, he had worked for the Missouri Highway Department, Delta Asphalt and Koch Asphalt. He owned Leray Transportation before retiring five years ago...

Looking Back 1/7(01/07/04)SIKESTON - Sikeston High School news: Several new students have been enrolled in Sikeston High School for the second semester. They are: Eloise Coots, senior of Diehlstadt; Gwendolyn Coots, junior; Dorothy Atkins, seventh grade, St. Louis; Ray Shelly, seventh grade, Fischer, Ark.; Ellis Martin, seventh grade, Parma; Aaron Mills, a former Sikeston pupil who is returning, seventh grade, St. Louis...

Endorsement failed to be fully truthful(01/07/04)This column is rarely devoted to the national political scene because I don't pretend to have any insight into national politics. The fact of the matter is my national political thoughts are skewed toward the conservative Republican agenda and I don't make any pretense otherwise...

Your View: On the LCRA(01/07/04)Dear Editor, It's been said repeatedly in the past few weeks that Sikeston is at a crossroads. I agree with that. I just don't see it quite the same way that some people do who want to raise taxes. Today, I'd like to discuss some of the background, and what I consider to be the critical choices for the LCRA...

Speakout 1/7(01/07/04)My compliments to Doug Friend on his retort to Josh Bill's lambasting of the City of Sikeston. I appreciate his effort. For January, I predict that we will have at least three different cold spells coming out of the Arctic Circle. Each one will last from eight to 10 days. ...